"I am alright," said Han Xuehan. Even though she was embarrassed, she knew that the villagers did not mean any harm. At most, they seemed to be curious about her situation, which was not surprising given her state.

However, Han Ruochen did not believe Han Xuehan. She knew her sister too well. She had always been extraordinarily kind and never did anything that would make the people around her upset. But she was not the same. After going through life and death, how could she still be worried about what people would think about her? She turned to look at the villagers and smiled at them politely.

"Apologies, everyone, but my sister is tired after travelling on a train for four days. If you don’t mind, we can talk later on?" Han Ruochen spoke in a teasing voice. Because she spoke in a polite manner, no one took her words to heart. They even nodded at her with a smile.

"Sure, sure. The journey must have been a long one."

"Four days? Oh dear. Did your mother marry you off to some far-off land?"

"You should take a nap. It must have been a tiring journey."

"Xuehan, if you are free, come to Auntie’s house. I just finished making dried pickles you used to love as a child; you will surely like them. I tried a new recipe, and it is better than the old one."

Han Xuehan smiled when she heard the words of the villagers. Though they were a little harsh to her, ultimately, they meant no harm. She nodded and accepted their greetings before returning home. However, as the four of them got closer to the Han residence, Han Xuehan could not help but turn nervous.

"Dad, will everything be alright?" She could not help but ask her father. She knew her mother’s stance very well; even though she had long accepted that her mother did not care about her, the thought of her mother standing at the entrance door and stopping her from entering her own house filled her with trepidation. She was no stranger to humiliation, but being humiliated by her in-laws was different from being insulted by her own mother.

Han Yichen patted his eldest daughter on the head. He said, "There is no need to worry. Even if your mother has something to say about your return, there is nothing she can do. The door to this house was built by my hand. As long as I am breathing, no one. Neither your husband nor your mother has the right to throw you out of this house."

"But father," Han Xuehan whispered with red eyes. "You know, mother. She cares a lot about her face and reputation. If she finds out that I have returned home after being bullied at my in-laws’ home, she will naturally make a fuss and ask me to go back. If I don’t listen to her, I wonder what she might do to me."

Han Yichen sneered when he heard the worries of his daughter. "If your mother dares to do anything to you, then I promise that I will make her life a living hell." He hadn’t even rushed inside and dealt with that woman for causing so much pain to his daughter; how dare that woman point fingers at his daughter? If she dared to cause trouble for Han Xuehan, then he would show his wife what a true man could do if he were to lose his temper.

However, Han Yichen truly underestimated the talent of his wife and adopted daughter. Even Han Ruochen did not expect that her mother and sister would give such a spectacular performance upon their return. She looked at the two women who were too engrossed in their search that they did not even sense the four of them return.

Han Xuehan also looked at the mess in front of her and did not know what to say. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

She turned to look at her father and, sure enough, saw his face darkening with each passing second and sucked in a breath. She knew that her mother was a rather unreasonable person, but she never expected that her mother would be so bold!

Han Yichen was hit the worst. He looked at the two people in front of him and sucked in a breath. These two had searched his room high and low. They almost tore the entire room down, as if they were ransacking the entire place.

Meng Yunhan and Han Ziyan were drenched in sweat. What were they searching for with such desperation?

Of course, it was money! It had to be money!

Han Yichen drew in a breath, his face turned bright red in anger, and he almost stumbled backwards upon seeing the good performance that his wife and adopted daughter gave to him. Seeing this, Han Xuehan and Han Ruochen hurried forward. The two of them caught Han Yichen just in time before he could hit his head. Han Xuehan helped her father calm down while Han Beijiang looked at what had happened in front of him with a stunned look on his face.

He seemed to realise that there was something wrong with his mother and his bad sister.

But he had no idea what the two of them were doing while looking around the room as if they were trying to destroy it completely. He knew that they were looking for something, but what?

Han Ruochen glanced at the two of them and could not help but say, "Mom, what are you doing? Should we give you two a hand?" These two were really characters; they actually turned the entire room upside down as if there had been a burglar inside the house.

Her mother and Han Ziyan were searching for her father’s money.

It was ridiculous! Simply ridiculous.

Meng Yunhan jumped in surprise. She turned and saw Han Yichen staring intently at her; she could feel her heart thumping loudly. "You...You all are back?"